Spiders Can be Dangerous
by DiNo22
Summary: The Lawson brothers are still in disagreement over Dr. Emily Peck.When Evan is bitten by a venomous spider, Hank can't be reached. Evan whump. Mostly Hurt/Comfort. A little romance.Some OC & SPOILERs for season 2. My first fanfic.
1. You're not poisonous, are you?

**Author's Note: I do NOT own Royal Pains. I am just a fan. I also do not have a medical background, plus I really do not know much about venomous spiders, or if there are even any in the Hamptons...but, this IS fiction after all.**

**BTW, this is my first fanfic story so I'd appreciate reviews. If you'd rather not, I hope you enjoy it anyway.**

**Summary: The Lawson brothers are still in disagreement over Dr. Emily Peck. When Evan is bitten by a venomous spider, Hank cannot, or does not want to be reached. Evan whump. Set at the end of season 2.**

"I'll see you in five then," Dr. Hank Lawson almost whispered to his phone, a smile on his face. As he turned around, Evan eyed him suspiciously and said "Going out with the enemy again, Henry?"

"It's pronounced E-MUH-LEE", Hank said, annoyance clearly evident in his voice. "Look Ev, I don't butt into your business with Paige so I wish you wouldn't butt into mine with Emily. She is not what you think she is. She is smart, funny and actually a good doctor. I think she is good for me, and for HankMed."

Evan was about to say something but Hank glared at him so he just kept quiet. What made matters worse was that Divya had actually endorsed Emily to take over her spot on the team. She did not say a word but gave Evan a smug look that made him shut up even more.

She gathered her things and wished all a happy weekend as she readied for a relaxing day at the spa. Hank grabbed his cellphone and said "Just call if there is an emergency. Otherwise, I'll be busy." Still not happy with Evan, he got up and left.

Evan sighed and sent a text to Paige, hoping he could pass the time with her. He hadn't seen her since their dinner and was wondering why she had not called or texted. As he waited for a response, he walked to the patio to bask in the sun. He was tinkering with some of the flowering plants when he felt a sting on his arm.

He saw a huge, hairy spider slowly crawl away as he grabbed his arm. He was alarmed by the incredible pain he felt on the bite site and fearing that the spider might be poisonous, he grabbed a nearby glass and put it on top of the spider.

He immediately got out a hanky and tied it above the bite site, then pulled out his phone to call Hank.

Hank frowned as he looked at the caller ID on his phone.

"Yeah Ev, did a patient call?"

Evan was in such pain that he could hardly get out the words. "uh, no but…"

Hank was a little concerned at the way Evan sounded but he figured that Evan was just trying to get him out of his date with Emily.

"Listen Ev, I had a tough week with the whole Dad and Boris fiasco. I think I am entitled to some R & R, don't you? "

Evan was in too much pain to even mutter a response and came out with a feeble "Sorry Hank but…"

"No buts, just please…please do not call again unless it's a matter of life or death!" And he promptly hung up.

Evan winced at Hank's words and considered what he said. Life or death. It was just a spider, after all. Even if it was big and looked kind of scary, he figured that maybe the bite was not too serious. It did hurt like hell though.

He tried to get up but a sudden bout of dizziness overcame him. He collapsed onto the ground, still grasping his arm which was quickly starting to burn. He started dialing again, trying Divya this time.

As Hank hung up the phone, he had a disgusted look on his face.

"What was that about?" Emily asked, as she caressed Hanks cheek.

"Oh, nothing. Evan is just sourgraping over our having fun while he is at home alone."

"He doesn't like me much, does he?"

Hank grabbed Emily by the waist and drew her near. He blew into her ear and said "Nah, he's just jealous that I get to hug a pretty li'l thing like you."

They started to kiss when Hank's phone rang again. Hank didn't even bother to look at the caller ID and yelled into the phone "Evan, I told you, unless it's…"

"So he's pestered you too." It was Divya. She went on to say that Evan had called her and that she blew him off saying it was her day off and she had no plans of scheming with him against Emily.

"Aha! So he WAS planning on doing that! What exactly did he say?" Hank asked, furious.

"Well, he didn't really say anything because as soon as I heard his voice, I immediately gave him a piece of my mind, ruining my spa day like that." Divya said.

Hank thanked her and apologized for his brother's disturbance.

Having been unsuccessful with Divya too, Evan didn't know what else to do. He was rapidly becoming weaker and was still on the ground on the patio. He looked at the spider in the glass and started talking to it.

"You're not poisonous, are you? How could such a tiny, ugly creature bring about so much pain, you little…" Suddenly, Evan let out a gasp and clutched his stomach in agony.

"What the…", he thought as he rolled from side to side. It was like blades were going through his insides. He could not understand it. He had been bitten on the arm. Why was his stomach burning? He was in such anguish that he just had to call Hank again. He knew Hank would come to the rescue if he found out that he was suffering. Thank God Hank was on speed dial.

When Hank's phone rang again, he was in the kitchen getting drinks for himself and Emily. Emily saw that it was Evan and answered it. She didn't really give him a chance to say anything though and just said curtly, "Hi Evan. It's Emily. Hank is not available at the moment, and won't be for awhile so I suggest you stop bothering us now and just wait for him to go home…tomorrow." With that, she hung up with a smirk.

Hank came in with two ice cold drinks and said, "He finally got tired of calling?" Emily just smiled and pulled Hank towards her as they got down on the couch.

Evan writhed in pain, beads of sweat on his forehead. He could not even hang on to his phone any longer.

"_Hank, where are you when I need you?" _

_**That's it...my first chapter of my first fanfic. Please...if you can...R & R.**  
_


	2. Where is that ambulance?

**Thank you to those who read and reviewed. You are truly inspiring. Again, I do NOT own Royal Pains, but I AM a big fan.**

_Evan writhed in pain, beads of sweat on his forehead. He could not even hang on to his phone any longer._

_"Hank, where are you when I need you?" _

It had been about an hour since Hank's phone rang last and he was wondering why. Emily told him that Evan probably finally found someone to play with so he left it at that and they went on to just enjoy each others' company.

Meanwhile, Evan had passed out on the patio and was finally coming to. A burst of pain in his abdomen rudely awakened him as he curled up in anguish again. He tried to crawl towards the house but he was just too weak. He prayed that someone, anyone, would come soon. He was feeling nauseous and had thrown up twice already.

"Hello….anybody home?"

Evan wondered if he was hallucinating. No, it couldn't be.

"Paige?" he called weakly.

Paige went out on the patio and gasped when she saw Evan doubled up on the ground.

"Oh my gosh Evan, what happened?"

Paige wasn't exactly who Evan wanted to see at that moment. He was probably stinking from the vomit, and he was definitely a fright to look at, was all Evan could think.

Evan closed his eyes and willed Paige away, but he felt her kneel beside him, her hands on his face.

"Spi….der…bite….." Evan said weakly. "Hurts…arm….stomach….all over…."

Paige pulled out her bandana and started wiping the sweat off Evan's face.

Evan winced.

"What is it Evan?"

"So...sor...ree Paige...stinks...yuck..."

Paige spoke to him soothingly, "Ssshhhh...Where is Hank. Evan? Why didn't you call him?"

Evan writhed as new waves of pain overtook him. Why was he hurting all over? He was bitten on the arm, for goodness' sake.

"Would….not…pick….up….day…off…"

"What?" Paige yelled indignantly. "Does he know you are in pain?"

Evan groaned before he finally answered "Said…call…only…if…emergency…aaaaahhhhhhh…."

Paige was panicking. She did not know how to help Evan so she whipped out her phone and dialed 911, giving as much detail as she could. She was not sure what she could give Evan to ease the pain so she just held his hand and wiped his sweat.

Evan suddenly felt uneasy as he sensed more nausea coming and begged Paige to stand back. Paige refused to budge saying she would hang on to him til the ambulance arrived. Then without warning, Evan heaved and vomited blood all over Paige.

Evan's eyes widened in horror but the pain took over again. He wanted to scream but he was already too embarrassed, having puked all over Paige so he just groaned and whimpered.

"Oh my guh…I….am….so….sorry Paige….please….forgi…." but he couldn't continue as he once again heaved and more blood spewed from his mouth.

Paige was horrified, not at all the blood all over her light pink summer dress, but at the amount of agony Evan was in.

"Where is that ambulance?" Paige yelled. "I'm going to call Hank right now!" She got out her phone and was shocked that she didn't have his number on her phone. Hadn't she called him before, when her ex-boyfriend was injured? She looked around for Evan's phone and when she found it, she started dialing when Evan said "Won't…pick….up"

Paige noticed that there were tears in Evan's eyes and cuddled his head on her lap, rubbing his temple to try to ease the pain. "Help will come soon, sweetie…" She tried calling Hank from Evan's phone hoping he would answer.

When Hank's phone rang, he was in the restroom. He heard it and called out to Emily to check who it was. Emily saw that it was Evan and turned the phone off. Hank came out of the restroom and asked if it was a patient. Emily shook her head and started seducing Hank before he could get to his phone. He couldn't resist her though and did not give it a second thought. If it was an emergency, they would call again, he figured.

Paige was really annoyed that Hank indeed, had not answered but she did not want to hurt Evan any more than he already was so she shut the phone quietly. She listened for the sirens of the paramedics but there was nothing, just the laboured breathing of Evan. He was obviously trying to stifle his moans and groans.

Evan looked about a million times worse than he did when she first got there, which was just about half an hour ago. Paige could feel his skin getting hot and she knew it was not a good sign.

Evan's breathing was beginning to sound even more labored but Paige suddenly heard the sirens approaching. She was about to sigh in relief when Evan screamed in agony as he clutched his stomach once again.

****That's it for Chapter 2. Hope you liked it. Chapter 3 coming soon, I promise.**


	3. Internal bleeding?

**Thanks for the reviews and for bothering to go on. Also please excuse the very fictional nature of Evan's ailment. Again, Royal Pains...not mine...but congratulations to its writers and producers.**

_Evan's breathing was beginning to sound labored but Paige suddenly heard the sirens approaching. She was about to sigh in relief when Evan screamed in agony as he clutched his stomach once again._

Hank and Emily were in a kissing marathon when Hank pulled away, a funny feeling in his gut ensuing. He could not figure it out and glanced at his phone. He wondered why Evan had not bothered to call again. Nor had anyone, for that matter. He was about to get it but Emily pulled him in for another round of "mouth-to-mouth". Hank worried a little about Evan but thought happy thoughts, _"Ahhh, he's having some fun of his own."_

Back at Boris' guest house, Paige stood back to let the paramedics get to work on Evan. She tried to tell them as much detail as she could as Evan was struggling just to breathe.

"Mr. Lawson, my name is Phil. Please try to relax. We'll take care of you," one of them said while getting Evan's vitals.

"Lawson? Aren't you the brother of the doctor from HankMed?" the other paramedic said as he busied himself with Evan's arm, which had become swollen and red.

Evan held out his other arm for a second and seemed to be pointing to something. Paige remembered the spider and told one of the men who was not actively working on Evan. She really did not want to grab thejar with the spider in it herself.

"Good, good. This will help Mr. Lawson a lot." the paramedic named Stan said.

An oxygen mask had been put on Evan but he was trying to pull it away. Phil thought he was trying to say something useful so he pulled it away for a second.

"Evan…Evan R….Lawson….CFO of HankMe…" Evan started coughing up blood before he could finish.

He pulled at his mask again and cried…"Paige….puh….lees don…..t….lee….." Suddenly, Evan started to convulse. There was flurry of activity as the paramedics worked on Evan.

Tears ran down Paige's cheeks as she whispered to herself "I won't leave you Evan. I'm right here."

Just as they had gotten Evan onto the gurney, Boris and Dieter arrived at the scene, wondering what all the fuss was about.

"What's going on here….Ms. Collins?" Boris said, his voice a little louder and less calm than usual. When he saw Evan, he immediately said "Where is Hank? Why isn't he here?"

"I'm sorry, sir, but we need to rush this man to the hospital before it's too late," paramedic Phil said. They continued to go about their business of loading Evan into the ambulance.

"I have to go with him," Paige said. "I promised him I would not leave…" She ran to his side and prepared to enter the ambulance. Before that, she turned to Boris and said, "I tried calling Hank but he was not answering. I think he is with Dr. Peck. Maybe, maybe you might have better luck?"

Boris was not used to being told what to do, or even asked. But he saw the state Evan was in and could not believe that his brother would not care. He waved the paramedics away and said crisply to Paige, "Don't worry Ms. Collins. I will have Dr. Lawson there instantly."

He looked at Dieter who had already started dialing.

Meanwhile, back at Emily's pad, Hank just could not get the funny feeling in his gut to go away. Something was not right and not even Emily's kisses could shake it off. He finally came up for air and glanced at his phone once again.

"I know it's my day off but…" as he finally took his phone from the table. When saw that it was off, he said "I'm pretty sure I charged this thing…why is it off?"

Emily sat up, irritated, and said "Well, if you had gotten an answering service like I suggested…"

Not really listening, Hank turned his phone on and saw that he had several missed calls and messages. He was about to listen to one when it rang. It was Boris.

"Dr. Lawson, you need to go to Hamptons Heritage right now. I am on my way."

Before he had a chance to ask what was wrong, Boris had hung up.

"It's Boris!" Hank said urgently. It must be serious, Hank thought, because Boris usually just asks to see him in his mansion, not the hospital.

"I need to go. Thanks for a wonderful time." Hank grabbed his things and ran off while dialing Evan's number. He was already in the car, annoyed that Evan wasn't picking up. "Darn it Evan…where are you when I need you?" Hank thought. He called Divya instead, and after apologizing for ruining her day off, he requested her to get to the hospital at once.

Divya asked if he had already called Evan and Hank muttered, "I don't know about that guy. One minute, he would not stop calling, and the next, he is not picking up." He thought about his kissing marathon with Emily and figured Evan was having one of his own with Paige. He thought about calling Paige but dismissed the thought, thinking Boris was the priority at the moment.

He called Jill instead, to ask her to look out for the arrival of Boris as it might be a serious emergency.

As soon as Jill got Hank's call, the ambulance pulled up to the ER entrance and she saw the paramedics bring out a gurney, and a blood-covered Paige Collins jumping out after.

"Hank….it isn't Boris….you need to hurry….NOW!"

The urgency in Jill's voice made Hank's heart skip a beat. What was going on? If it wasn't Boris, then who? He stepped on the gas and went as fast as the car would go.

He got to Hamptons Heritage the same time as Divya. She waved at him with a worried look on her face.

"I've been trying to reach Evan but he wouldn't pick up. And I saw Boris and Dieter run into the hospital. What's happening Hank?"

Hanks heart beat faster and shook his head as they ran. "I don't know Div. Maybe Dr. Caseras is sick or something. It must be bad because both Boris AND Jill did sound a bit panicked when I talked to them."

When Hank and Divya were finally in the hospital, they found Jill talking to Boris and leading him to her office. Hank ran to join them. Boris turned to Hank and demanded "Where were you? Your phone went straight to voicemail the first five times I called!"

"I…I'm sorry Boris. I had no idea. I thought I had charged it." Hank looked at his phone and notice that it was actually fully-charged. That was strange. He then turned his attention back to Boris. "What is it, Boris? Is it Dr. Caseras?"

At that exact moment, Paige charged up to Hank, sobbing. She started hitting Hank on the chest, crying, "Where the hell have you been? Do you have any idea how much Evan has been suffering?"

Hank stood back and held Paige by the shoulder, confused. "Look Paige, I know Evan doesn't like Emily, but I hardly doubt that he is suffering."

Jill took Paige by the arms and tried to calm her. She looked at Hank incredulously and said "Hank….Evan…he's…"

Before she could finish her sentence, a code blue was called to the ER. Paige, Jill and Boris looked up all at once and ran to the ER. Divya was there staring at a crowd of medical personnel around a bed. She was trembling.

Hank went up to her, looking at where she was staring. It was suddenly all a blur to him. The doctors and nurses buzzing around, the sound of the code blue machine. He could barely make out Jill's voice trying to calm Paige…and Paige just crying…."Evan…."

"_Evan?" _Hank thought, realization dawning on him. "EVAN!" He shouted and ran towards the crowd before Jill or Divya could stop him.

Dr. Blair saw him and ran to meet him. "Hank, the doctors are doing all they can. You know you cannot treat him. Come on, we need to give them space to work."

Hank could not believe his eyes. Evan was on the bed, deathly pale and very limp. He didn't even look alive.

"Hank? Hank? Dr. Lawson!" said. Hank looked at her and said, "What…what happened?"

Dr. Blair handed him a clipboard. "I am sure Jill and Ms Collins can fill you in on what happened. Right now, I need you to sign this. Evan has massive internal bleeding and needs to be brought up to surgery at once!"

Hank took the clipboard nodding, although still in a daze. He quickly signed the form, his eyes still on Evan. Then he turned to Dr. Blair. "Internal bleeding?"

Dr. Blair calmly told him that the venom of the spider had spread and was wreaking havoc on Evan's internal organs, including causing the bleed. She gave Hank all his vital stats and assured him that though they didn't sound good, the doctors at Hampton Heritage would do all they could to help Evan. She also said that the spider that had bitten Evan was in the lab and they were working on an antidote. Then she left.

Hank and Divya just stared as Evan was rushed into the elevator that would take him to the OR.

"Come on Hank. Divya. I think you'll be more comfortable waiting in my office. I will make sure someone will give us updates over there." She led a crying Paige down the hall to her office. Boris put his hand on Hank's back and they followed. He called Dieter and muttered a few words in German before they entered Jill Casey's office.

Hank sank down on the chair in Jill's office and hung his head in his hands. He was sobbing uncontrollably. Jill left for awhile and came back with some scrubs that Paige could wear. Before she left to change, Paige knelt in front of Hank and said "This is Evan's blood. He vomited all over me. Twice. He was in so much agony but all he could say was that he was sorry he had puked blood on me." With that, she stood up and went to change.

Boris sat next to Hank and put his hand on his back. "I don't know why your phone was off Hank, but I am sure it was not intentional. I need to go now. If there is ANYTHING I can do, ANYTHING Evan might need, please do not hesitate to call. My phone will be on."

Hank looked up for a moment to thank Boris before he left. He then turned to Divya who looked almost as distressed as he did. "I…I…don't know….how…this…." Hank managed to say. He tried to recall their last conversation. "Divya…I think my last words to him were 'don't call again unless it's a matter of life or death." With that, Hank started sobbing again.

**That's it for Chapter 3. I'm a little afraid to go on because I really don't have any medical background, but I keep telling myself "This is fiction after all". I promise to try to keep it as realistic as possible. I will just concentrate on the people rather than the medical stuff.**


	4. Think positive for Evan

**Chapter 4**

"_Divya…I think my last words to him were 'don't call again unless it's a matter of life or death.'" _

The atmosphere in Jill's office was a mixture of tension and sadness. Jill had offered Hank and Divya coffee and water but both refused for the moment. Paige returned looking fresh and clean, her blood-covered clothes in a bag.

She sighed and sat down next to Hank.

" He was so scared….and in so much pain." Paige sniffed.

Hank looked up and turned to look at her. "Paige…what happened?"

Paige didn't look at him. She just stared ahead and recounted how she had gone to their home to say sorry that she had not answered any of Evan's text messages, and to invite him to the beach or something. She said she was planning on a picnic and a stroll, but she found the house empty. Then she went on to say how she had heard a noise out on the patio so she went out only to find Evan doubled up in pain. She told him in detail about the spider, his arm, his agonizing stomach pains, how he could hardly even speak, his labored breathing, his vomiting blood. She paused for a bit, then looked at Hank and said, "When I asked where you were, all he said was that you were on your day off and could not be disturbed unless it was a matter of life or death." Hank winced at that memory.

Her eyes were tearing up again when she continued, "I wanted to call you but didn't have your number, so I got his phone…and he said you would not pick up…and you know, you DIDN'T pick up. I tried again, but then it went straight to voicemail, like it had been turned off."

Paige looked at Hank earnestly and said, "Why? Why Hank? What doctor turns off his phone, even on his day off?"

Hank's head was again in his hands and he was sobbing. Divya put her hand on his back and asked Paige, "Why didn't you call me?"

Paige answered, "By then, he was in way too much pain for me to even think about anything besides calling 911." She paused a bit, looked at the bag that contained her bloody clothes and continued, "Pain cannot even begin to describe it...it was...it was more like he was in total...agony..." her voice trailed off.

Divya didn't know what to say. She thought back to the phone call from Evan. What had he said to her? He didn't mention any pain at all. She realized that she didn't really give Evan a chance to say anything. All he had said was "_Divya, Hank won't listen…_" then she had cut him off, thinking that he was going to rant about Emily again. It was only then that she recalled a slight gasp in his voice. She had taken over the conversation, lecturing him about allowing Hank to be happy with his new friend. Then before he could say anything, she admonished him about wasting five minutes of her day off and spa time, and promptly hung up.

Everyone was silent for awhile. Hank was restlessly awaiting an update on Evan's surgery. He had asked Paige earlier about the spider and had sat at Jill's computer to search up on it. Someone had actually brought them some photgraphs of it from the lab. Divya was on the other side of the table doing the same thing on her laptop. Jill had gone out to see if she could get some news, and Paige just hung out, sometimes sitting, sometimes standing, sometimes pacing, and occasionally looking at her watch.

Hank noticed this and quietly told her that if she needed to leave, she could and that he would call her immediately if there was any kind of news on his brother.

Paige looked at him incredulously and yelled, "I witnessed your brother go through hell. I held his hand and tried to ease his pain. I myself, went through hell trying to figure out how to take away his pain! You think….you think….you think that just because there are actual professionals now trying to make him better, I will actually just up and leave?"

She walked towards the desk, hands on her hips and continued, "I promised him I would not leave. I…I…I…promised him I would not…." and she broke down and sobbed.

Divya and Hank were shocked at Paige's outburst. They knew that Evan had been having real feelings for Paige, but they did not think Paige really cared.

Hank went over to Paige and hugged her cautiously. "I didn't mean it like that. I'm sorry."

Paige just cried on his shoulder.

A few minutes later, when things had calmed down. Divya asked Paige, as subtly as possible, "Paige, can I ask you a question? I thought Evan was just a faux beau. When did you start caring about him?"

Paige wiped her eyes with a handkerchief and said, "At the dinner when Evan met my parents, he said the most sincere, wonderful things…he just…touched my heart. Then when he refused the payment I offered him for his….services….I had completely fallen." She looked at Divya earnestly and said, "You are with him almost everyday….you've GOT to know how special the guy is…"

Divya nodded and smiled ruefully. She did know exactly how special Evan was beneath all his jokes and childlike behavior.

All three of them looked up when the door opened. It was Jill with some drinks and snacks. The expectant look on their faces caused her to shake her head saying, "No news yet, sorry." She followed it up immediately with, "But then, isn't no news good news?"

They all tried to think positively for Evan.

Meanwhile, back at Emily's place, she was getting restless and annoyed. Why hadn't Hank called? Was Boris in such bad shape to take Hank's mind completely off her? She got her phone and dialed Hank's number.

While waiting for news about Evan, Hank and Divya's phone had rung several times. There was no real emergency so they postponed everything to another day. When Emily's number showed up on his caller ID, Hank hesitated before answering.

"Hey Dr. Lawson, is Boris in such a serious state that you can't come back and enjoy the rest of your day off?" Hank's mind was still in a haze and could only mutter, "Uhm, Boris is fine but I can't really leave the hospital right now. I'll call you later, k?" Then he hung up. He was not sure what to think of Emily right now. He was still wondering how his phone happened to be off when it was in fact, fully charged.

Emily wasn't pleased with how she was spoken to and decided to go to Hamptons Heritage herself.

Dr Blair entered Jill's office just then. Hank, Paige, Divya and Jill all stood up suddenly, like they were being called to attention.

"I don't have much to tell you except that the surgery is taking longer than expected. We are hoping that the antidote would help speed things along, but it doesn't really do much to repair the damage that has already been done to some of his organs."

Paige and Divya gasped at the same time. Hank just stared at Dr. Blair who continued, "I just thought I'd update you even if there isn't much to report yet. I WILL say that Evan has got the best surgeons working on him as requested by Mr….Mr….Mr Boris."

"Kuester von Jurgens-Ratenicz", Jill and Hank said together.

Dr. Blair was about to turn and walk away when she addressed Hank.

"Your brother has lost a lot of blood…". Before she could go on, Hank looked at Jill who knew what he was thinking and said to Dr. Blair "We're on it." Divya and Paige insisted they go too, just in case they could be a match for Evan's blood type.

When Emily parked her car at the HH parking lot, she was already quite annoyed at Hank for virtually blowing her off earlier. She walked to the information desk, introduced herself as Dr. Emily Peck and asked about the room of Mr. Boris Kuester von Jurgens-Ratenicz.

"I'm sorry ma'am, but there is no patient by that name here."

Hank and the others were back in Jill's office, tired and tense. Only Hank and Paige had been a match and several bags of blood were taken from them. Divya had returned after leaving to take a call from Raj. She had informed him of Evan's plight and he was a little distressed about it too. Raj sincerely liked Evan.

It was a couple of hours before Jill's phone rang. She took the call and upon hanging up said, "Let's go. They're waiting for us upstairs.

Hank was nervous and scared as they took the elevator to the 7th floor. He was terrified about the outcome of the surgery and Evan's health. He was nervous about facing his brother after the way he treated him. This was his baby brother and he had just blown him off, not listening to him, prioritizing what now seemed like a silly little fling.

"_This is Evan…he ALWAYS comes first._" Hank thought to himself. "_he ALWAYS comes first."_


	5. Can I wake up now?

**Chapter 5**

_"This is Evan…he ALWAYS comes first." Hank thought to himself. "he ALWAYS comes first."_

Hank and the rest were in the Intensive Care waiting lounge. Divya and Jill stood close to Hank while Paige stayed a little behind them, clutching what looked like a photograph.

Dr. Blair finally entered.

"Dr. Lawson, this is Dr. Lee. He is the surgeon who led the team that operated on Evan."

The doctors shook hands afterwhich Dr. Lee proceeded to tell them how Evan was. Despite his medical background, Hank could not fathom the extent of Evan's injuries. No matter how hard he tried, he only caught bits and pieces of what Dr. Lee was saying. "Some liver damage", "perforation in the intestinal lining", "might need dialysis". It was uncharacteristic of Hank to not fully take in all the information the doctor was giving. He wanted to absorb it all. He wanted to know exactly what was happening in Evan's body so he could help him recover, but all he could think of was that his baby brother had suffered through all this and he had not been around to stop it.

When Dr. Lee was done with his litany of Evan's conditions, he saw that Hank seemed to be in a trance.

"Dr. Lawson?" Hank finally came out of his trance when Paige asked from behind him, "Dr. Lee…how could a tiny spider make all that happen?"

Hank turned to look at Paige, then back at Dr. Lee. Spider? He hadn't even thought about the spider. He mind was still stuck on a suffering Evan with no Doctor Big Brother to help.

"I'm not sure Miss, but the lab reports show that the spider that bit Mr. Lawson had apparently been quite toxic." He addressed Hank once again and said, "Your brother is now in the ICU until he is more stable, then, as I understand it, he will be brought to a private room arranged by some benefactor."

"_Boris_" Hank thought, and made a mental note to thank him person later. Later. When Evan was well and happy and healthy again.

Hank shook Dr. Lee's hand, thanked him and said, "I'm sorry I haven't been too attentive doctor but I am just really worried about my brother. He is all I have, you know. Do you think I can sit down with you later to discuss his condition further? Right now, I just need to see him."

"I understand Dr. Lawson."

"Hank, please call me Hank."

"Hank. I am not sure if he has woken up yet, but you may go see him for a bit, two at a time please."

Hank looked at Paige who shook her head. "He really needs YOU, Hank. Just, please tell him that I'm right here and I'll see him later."

Hanked mouthed a "thank you" to Paige then looked at Divya who said that she would go in with him as she also wanted to make sure that he was indeed alive and breathing.

Meanwhile, Emily Peck was in the hospital cafeteria trying to find someone, anyone, who might know of Hank's whereabouts. She had gone back to her car after discovering that Boris Kuester von Jurgens-Ratenicz was in fact, not a patient in this hospital. However, she saw Hank and Divya's cars in the parking lot, so she went back in. She was fuming when her many calls to Hank all went straight to voicemail.

"Aaarrgghh…what kind of doctor is he to not answer his phone!"

Up in the ICU, not even the medical backgrounds of both Hank Lawson and Divya Katdare could prepare them for what they were about to see.

Evan lay on the bed, deathly pale, with all kinds of tubes sticking out of him. His left arm was completely bandaged. He was so still that if it weren't for the beeping and the hissing of the machines surrounding his bed, he might have looked…..dead.

They walked slowly to the bed and Hank put his hand on Evan's, ever so lightly, like Evan was some delicate, breakable china or something.

"Oh Evan….I am soooo sorry…" Hank whispered. Divya bent over and kissed Evan's forehead. The young man stirred a bit and moaned. His eyelids fluttered but they did not open.

"Sshhhh Evan…I'm here….just rest for now, okay?" Hank whispered in Evan's ear as he stroked his hair. The doctor had tears in his eyes as he reflected how much his little brother looked like their mother on her sick bed.

Divya and Hank just stood by Evan's bed quietly waiting for some sign of life from the young man.

"_Evan R. Lawson, CFO of HankMed. Yup, that's me," _Evan thought. His mind was a bit fuzzy. He couldn't figure out where he was. He tried to open his eyes but his eyelids were just too heavy. "_Who put sandbags on my eyes_?" he wondered. And why did he hurt all over, like someone had taken a lawn mower and gone through every inch of his body, inside AND out. "_UGH, what kind of nightmare IS this? Can I wake up now?_"

Evan tried to move but it just hurt too much.

"I think he's trying to wake up."

"Evan? Evan?"

"_Evan._ _Evan R. Lawson, CFO of HankMed. Yup, that's me," _Evan thought again. Voices. He could hear voices.

"_Open….sesame…" _Evan commanded his eyes. They fluttered a bit. He could see a teeny bit of light. But the sandbags were still there.

"_OPEN…SESAME!"_ He commanded again.

Evan R. Lawson, CFO of HankMed finally opened his eyes and found himself staring into the familiar kind eyes of his brother, DOCTOR Henry Lawson.


	6. Hank's VIP Patient

**Chapter 6**

_Evan R. Lawson, CFO of HankMed finally opened his eyes and found himself staring into the familiar kind eyes of his brother, DOCTOR Henry Lawson._

"Hey Buddy," Hank said softly.

_Why did Hank look like that? Red eyes….had he been crying? Why was he smiling like a he had eaten all the snacks I had stashed away in the pantry? And WHY am I am attached to all these machines?_

Evan opened his mouth to say something but he couldn't get anything out. It seemed like his throat was all thick and scratchy.

"Here, try a sip of this." DIVYA! Evan turned to see Divya on his other side holding a cup with straw. "_What's going on_?" he thought. "_Everybody is acting so…..nice….and overly careful…it's kind of….creepy."_

The sip of water did make Evan's throat feel a little better but he was very, very tired. He just wanted to close his eyes again and sleep.

"How are you feeling Ev?" Hank asked.

"Hurts…tired…."

"It's okay…get some rest. You've been through a lot."

Evan sighed. He wanted to ask what he'd been through, but he was just too tired and sleepy so he just closed his eyes again. He really was exhausted, plus the truth was he did not want to face Hank just yet. He knew that Hank must have been upset that his day off was shortened. And Divya. Why was she acting so sweet? Hadn't he ruined her spa day? Oh well, he could deal with that later. Right now, he just wanted to sleep.

Hank sat on the chair beside Evan's bed while Divya stepped out so Paige could visit. Evan was asleep by then so she just kissed him lightly on his cheek and looked at him for awhile. She didn't want to leave but there was only one chair in the small room. Hank offered the chair to her, but she shook her head and said, "I said it before. It's YOU he needs right now. I just wanted to see him. I can wait back in the lounge til he's transferred to the private room. Jill said it's more of a suite so we can all be with him there."

Hank was amazed. He saw Paige as a spoiled, rich Hamptons brat. He actually figured that she was just playing with Evan, her supposed faux beau. This was a different, totally different side to her. Maybe Evan was more perceptive than he thought.

Somewhere else in the hospital, Emily was strutting around trying to find Hank. He still hadn't answered her calls and she was in a total rage by now. She spotted Jill come out of the elevator and rushed to meet her. When Jill saw her, she planned on making an escape but Emily was too fast.

"Hey Jill, have you seen Hank anywhere? He told me to meet him here but I can't seem to find him."

Jill eyed Emily suspiciously. Paige had told her every single detail of what transpired earlier that day, and she didn't really like Emily's role in it. She knew Hank would never turn off his phone for anything so of course, the suspicion went straight to Emily. Besides, she knew that Hank was still in a complete daze about his kid brother and she doubted that he could even think of anyone else, least of all Emily. Then again, Paige did say that Evan had said that Hank had told him not to call unless it was an emergency. Hmmmm.

Anyway, Jill said, "Hank is with Evan right now."

"EVAN? He said he was with an important patient! And all this time, he's just been with Evan?"

Jill decided not to tell her about Evan's condition just yet. She was not liking this side of Emily at all. She excused herself telling the fuming doctor that she was very busy arranging for a private room for Hank's patient and promptly left.

Emily was absolutely livid! She was sure that Evan and Jill (didn't she used to go out with Hank?) had orchestrated all this, calling him about an important patient. Forcing him into leaviner her house. What were they going to do now, invent a seriously ill patient? She headed for the Information Desk to find out more about Dr. Hank Lawson's alleged patient.

The Information Desk was not helpful at all. They insisted that Dr. Lawson did not work at that hospital and currently had no patient under his care there.

"What kind of conspiracy IS this?" Emily had yelled at the elderly volunteer manning the desk. She did everything she could to squeeze any kind of info from her, including emphasizing that she was DOCTOR Emily Peck, MD and that she was also called in to treat that particular patient.

"I'm sorry Dr., but Dr. Lawson really does NOT have any patient under his care here at Hamptons Heritage."

Emily stormed off and decided to find Dr. Blair. After all, she had treated her and her family at one point, for Carbon Monoxide poisoning. Maybe she would be more cooperative.

When she found Dr. Blair, she strode up to the her and said emphatically, "Is Boris Kuester von Jurgens-Ratenicz a patient at this hospital or not?"

Surprised, Dr. Blair cautiously replied, "No, Boris is NOT a patient at this hospital."

"Then who is the damned VIP patient Dr. Hank Lawson is treating?" Emily almost yelled.

Dr. Blair was not pleased with the way she was being spoken to so she chose her words carefully. "I do not know what this is about, Dr. Peck, but Dr. Lawson has no authority to treat any patient in this hospital. He is NOT employed here, as I am sure you know."

"Aaaaarrrrggghhh!"

At that moment, Divya stepped out of the elevator. She was off to buy some take out dinner for Hank and Paige. Emily went up to her and said, "AHA! I knew it. Hank IS here somewhere isn't he?"

Divya looked at her with a puzzled expression. "Yes, he is. I was just about to get him some dinner."

Finally, someone who told the truth. Emily calmed herself down so as not to turn off Divya and said "Oh, well I've been trying to get a hold of him, you see, and he hasn't been answering his phone. I heard he has a very important and critically ill patient and no one seems to know anything about it. What is all the hush-hush about?"

At this point¸Divya had gotten annoyed at Emily. She was in a hurry as she did not want to be away from Evan for too long. She shrugged her shoulder and said, "I don't know about the hush-hush but I really have to go. It's been quite a day and I'm sure Hank is hungry." And she rushed off before Emily could decide to join her.

Back upstairs, Jill was supervising the move of Evan to the private room. Evan was still asleep but his vitals seemed stable. After making sure that the monitoring from the nurses' station would still be in place, a couple of nurses and aides prepared to transfer Evan and all the equipment. Paige followed closely while Hank hung around Jill for a bit, to thank her.

It was a short walk to the room as it was also on the 7th floor. Side by side, Hank looked at Jill and thanked her for all that she was doing for Evan. Jill smiled and said that Evan was like a brother to her too.

When they reached the room, the nurses and aides went to work getting Evan settled. He seemed to be sleeping through the whole thing as the nurses fixed all the tubes, probes and machines. The room was big, by any hospital standards. It had a couple of comfortable looking chairs and even a small couch by the window, plus a private bathroom. Except for the hospital bed and all the machines, and of course, the still seriously ill patient, it kind of looked more like a hotel room than a hospital room.

"Evan will like this," Hank nodded in approval. "It doesn't seem so….'hospitally'." Hank chuckled at his use of a term Evan might have used. He looked at Jill again and said, "Remind me to formally thank Boris…"

"For handpicking the best surgeons to operate on Evan?"

"Oh, yes of course, and arranging for this room too."

Jill looked baffled and said slowly, "Boris…didn't arrange for this Hank."

"He didn't?" Hank was puzzled. "Then….who…did?"

Jill raised her eyebrows then glanced at Paige who had gotten a chair and was sitting next to Evan, stroking his bandaged arm. She seemed like she was talking to Evan with a smile on her face, but very softly so no one could hear.

Hank turned to look at them. Paige Collins? This young lady was surely a bag of surprises.

Jill smiled and said, "She really seems to care, doesn't she? It wasn't just a matter of being at the right place at the right time…Anyway, her family has been a huge benefactor of the hospital for decades so it wasn't a problem when she called in the request."

Hank nodded in understanding. He walked quietly to the bed and settled on a chair on the other side of Evan and cleared his throat. Paige looked up to see Hank smiling at her. "Thank you so much for being there for Evan when I wasn't. I don't even know how I can begin to rep…"

"Ssssh," Paige interrupted. "I don't even want to hear and talk of repayment. I love Evan, Hank."

Hank's eyes widened, as did Paige's. Hank was surprised at this development. And Paige…Paige seemed mildly shocked as well. She didn't even realize her love for Evan until the moment that she said it out loud to Hank. She was obviously a little flustered by her sudden revelation, but she didn't really feel like retracting her statement. She looked fondly at Evan and said, "I do…I do…love…" then she looked back at Hank. "I do love him, Hank."

And she leaned over and planted a peck on the sleeping man's lips.


	7. You named the spider Emily?

**Chapter 7**

_She looked fondly at Evan and said, "I do…I do…love…" then she looked back at Hank. "I do love him, Hank." _

_And she leaned over and planted a peck on the sleeping man's lips._

Emily Peck was still furious over how she was being treated by everyone. Divya's blowing her off was the last straw. She calmed herself down so that she could think of a new strategy. She knew that Divya would return with the food so she made herself inconspicuous in the reception area until Divya got back.

When she spotted Divya half and hour later, she followed her, always walking with crowds of people so that she would not be noticed. Thank goodness there was a sizeable crowd waiting for the elevator so she was able to slip in unnoticed. She stood right at the back behind several big aides. By the time they reached the 7th floor, there were only a handful of people left in the elevator, so Emily hoped that Divya would not turn around.

Emily tailed Divya cautiously¸not wanting to be discovered, just yet. She noticed that they were in the Intensive Care floor, secretly incensed at all the lies about Hank not having a patient there.

She stood behind a big plant and took note of where Divya entered.

Divya walked in on Paige and Hank sitting on each side of Evan's bed. Hank seemed to be napping, his head jerking back once in awhile. Paige looked up and smiled at Divya.

"The nurses just came in and said Evan's vitals are all stable and he is just resting peacefully."

Hank, Divya and Paige were fed and rested a bit. They settled into their own nooks in the room as doctors and nurses bustled in and out to check on Evan. Emily was annoyed at all the activity going on, medical personnel entering and leaving the mysterious room every few minutes. She didn't get a chance to go near. She tried to find out more by talking to one of the nurses who had just left the room but she didn't use a name and just said "The patient is doing ok and yes, Dr. Lawson is in there with him." She didn't dare ask who the patient was lest she trigger the nurse's suspicion.

Opportunity finally presented itself close to midnight when a code blue was called and everyone seemed to be busy on the other end of the wing. Neither Divya nor Hank had left the room so Emily slowly crept up to the door.

Meanwhile, Hank had settled again on his side of Evan's bed and Divya had sat on the couch by the window. They were all tired and tried to get some rest.

Paige fixed Evan's blanket and then took out a small silver frame from her purse and put it on the night stand. She had gotten the frame from the hospital gift shop earlier. Hank smiled and said, "Is that the spider…?"

Paige nodded and said, "I bet Evan will get a kick out of this."

"Mmmm…nice touch….a framed photo of Emily…" a raspy voice suddenly sounded.

"Evan…you're awake!" Paige cooed, stroking Evan's curls. They grinned at each other.

"You named the spider Emily!" Hank chuckled in disbelief.

"Oh, hi Hank."

"YOU NAMED THE SPIDER EMILY?" a shriek came from the doorway. Emily stormed in. She totally forgot her shock at seeing that the patient was Evan as she was too caught up in the fact that a huge ugly spider was named after her.

Evan and his visitors were all speechless as they stared at the intruder. Hank quickly came to his senses and rushed to Emily's side.

"Emily…what are you doing here?"

The young doctor could not keep her voice down. "What am I doing here? Shouldn't I be asking the questions? What are YOU doing here, and why is a spider named after me?"

"It might have something to do with poison…" Paige whispered with a chuckle. Hank glared at her, as did Emily. Evan laughed and then groaned as the laughter had brought about a ridiculous stabbing pain in his gut. Divya couldn't help herself from grinning either.

"POISON? POISON? Is my name synonymous to poison now?"

Hank tried desperately to calm her down and looked pleadingly at Evan.

"C'mon Emily, they didn't mean anything by it. They are just teasing."

"Uhm, I don't think so…" Paige and Hank both whispered at the same time. "JINX" they both said in unison then giggled.

"Aaaahhhh….hurts when I laugh…" Evan grimaced and grinned at the same time.

Emily was livid.

"Come on Evan, say you're sorry." Hank pleaded, glaring at Evan.

"Fine." Evan grumbled but Paige and Divya were obviously trying to stifle their laughter.

"I'm sorry, HANK, that I named my spider after your girlfriend, poison,…I mean….enemy…I mean…Emily…" and the ladies couldn't hold it any longer and burst out into uncontrollable giggles.

Evan wanted to laugh some more but his body suddenly seemed to erupt in indescribable stabs of pain. He rolled over on his side clutching his stomach with his free arm. Paige and Divya were laughing so hard that they didn't notice, and neither did Hank who was still trying to appease a raging Emily.

A nurse ran into the room and yelled "WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?" She saw the very angry Emily who was an unfamiliar face to her so she commanded "You need to leave right now" and pulled her towards the door as she rushed to Evan's bedside.

Still not noticing Evan's agony, Hank followed Emily outside to try to talk to her.

Nurse Rose was at Evan's and picked up the phone and ordered "We need a doctor in Mr. Lawson's room right NOW?"

The ladies suddenly stopped laughing, shocked by the urgency in the nurse's voice.

"Oh my God Evan!" Paige immediately grasped his shoulder. Evan's eyes were shut tight, sweat beads flowing down his face. The nurse tried to straighten him but he was curled up in a ball so tightly and groaning so loudly it broke Paige and Divya's hearts.

Oblivious to what was going on in the room, Hank had led Emily to the waiting area and was trying to calm her down. She was ranting on about how there was a conspiracy to separate them and how Jill, Dr. Blair, Divya, and Paige were in on it. She kept pushing Hank away as he tried to grab her shoulders. Finally, she stopped and looked at him, anger still evident in her eyes.

"Emily…I'm sure Evan didn't really mean anything by it…he is just sick, and drugged. He just woke up from a very traumatic event…a venomous spider bit him, he was in surgery for hours…"

"If I know your brother, he probably got the spider to bite him on purpose just to get you out of my house!" Hank was shocked by the accusation and was about to dispute it when he saw Dr. Lee run towards Evan's room. He pushed Emily aside gently and ran after Dr. Lee.

"HANK!" Emily yelled after him.

Hank did not even hear her as his heart raced. What was happening?

He stood at the doorway of Evan's room and saw Divya and Paige by the window watching the flurry of activity around Evan. Three nurses were struggling to straighten Evan who was still curled in a ball in pain. The anguish on the face of his baby brother was more than Hank could bear. He took a few steps towards the bed as Dr. Lee tried to talk to Evan.

"Hurts….hurts so….much…." Evan gasped. Dr. Lee nodded at one of the nurses who injected something into his IV. A few moments passed and Evan finally seemed to relax a little. The doctor was then able to lift his gown to inspect his abdomen. Evan groaned a little, his eyes still shut tight. Hank went to him and held his hand.

Evan opened his eyes a little and squinted at his big brother.

"Sss…sorry Hank…"

Hank just squeezed his hand.

When Dr. Lee was done with his inspection of Evan's abdomen, he turned to Hank and said "We need to take Evan down for a scan to see what might be going on." His stitches are fine and he says his pain is coming from inside and not his wounds. We'll also be testing for infection as he seems to be running a slight fever. I've put him on some painkillers for now and he should be sleeping soon."

Hank thanked the doctor who then left.

He looked over to Divya and Paige who both approached the bed, Divya's hands on Paige's shoulders. Hank turned to face Evan who was looking at Paige.

"Hey…"

Paige smiled at him then looked up at Hank. "You know Hank, when Evan was trying to call you before, when he was suffering and in pain, Emily answered the phone and told Evan that you were busy and to not call again. Maybe that's why she turned off the phone."

Hank just looked at Evan and said, "I don't think she would do that Ev, you've got to get over your rift with her. Please try to give her a chance."

Paige glared at Hank. "I think she's still outside Hank. You should go talk to her."

Hank nodded and said to Evan, "I'll just be a moment…I'll be right back, ok?"

Evan nodded. "Yeah, I'm tired…I just want to sleep…"

As Hank walked towards to the door, Evan said groggily, "Hank?"

"Yes buddy?"

"Can I ask you a question?" Evan was half-asleep.

"Sure, what is it?"

Evan yawned lightly, eyes already shut, and he said, "When did I become your last priority?"

Hank's mouth dropped. He started saying "Ev.." but Evan was already asleep.


	8. He's bleeding again

**Author's note: I would like to thank all those who took the time to read, and even more thanks to those who wrote reviews. good and bad. **

**Chapter 8**

"_Can I ask you a question?" Evan was half-asleep._

"_Sure, what is it?"_

_Evan yawned lightly, eyes already shut, and he said, "When did I become your last priority?"_

Hank was frozen where he stood. Evan's question hit him hard. Flashes of memory invaded his mind. His voice and those of Evan, Divya, Boris, Jill, Paige, and even Emily rang in his head, over and over.

"_Look Ev, I don't butt into your business with Paige so I wish you wouldn't butt into mine with Emily." "No buts, just please…please do not call again unless it's a matter of life or death!" "Evan is just sourgraping over our having fun while he is at home alone.""He doesn't like me much, does he?" "I'm pretty sure I charged this thing…why is it off?" "Dr. Lawson, you need to go to Hamptons Heritage right now." "Hank….it isn't Boris….you need to hurry….NOW!" " He was so scared….and in so much pain." "…he said you would not pick up…and you know, you didn't pick up. I tried again, but then it went straight to voicemail, like it had been turned off." "some liver damage", "perforation in the intestinal lining", "dialysis". "You named the spider Emily!" "Come on Evan, say you're sorry." "If I know your brother, he probably got the spider to bite him on purpose just to get you out of my house!" "Hurts….hurts so….much…." "When did I become your last priority?"_

He turned slowly to Divya who started for the door saying, "Don't worry about Emily. I'll go send her home."

Hank gave her an appreciative look and went to his brother's side. How could Evan think he was his last priority? The voices invaded his mind again. _" He was so scared….and in so much pain." "Come on Evan, say you're sorry."_ _ "Hurts….hurts so….much…." "…last priority…last priority…"_

Tears started streaming down his face. He took his brother's hand in his and held it tight. The image of their mother on her deathbed made him wince. He looked at his baby brother…pale, breathing shallowly …he looked way too much like mom dying. He glanced up at Paige. What was that expression on her face? Anger…pity…sadness…disappointment? He sighed and sat down, Evan's hand still in his.

"I'll be right here Evan." Looking up at Paige again, he said "I promise, I won't go anywhere…I'll be right here with him."

Paige nodded and relaxed a little and settled in her chair. Hank looked at the framed picture and said with a chuckle, "He named the spider Emily." And the two laughed softly.

A few minutes later, Divya walked in with Jill. It was way past midnight and both Paige and Hank had dozed off on their seats next to Evan's bed. Paige had her head on the bed next to Evan's bandaged arm, her hand on his hand. Hank too, still clutched his brother's other hand but he had brought his chair closer and was slouching back, his head hanging forward.

They both woke up when the two ladies walked in.

"Paige, someone brought fresh clothes for you and left it in my office." Jill handed Paige a bag.

Divya told Hank that she took the liberty of going to Shadow Pond to get Hank fresh clothes too. Jill said she would go get some sleep at home and come back early the next day. Hank mouthed a thank you and settled back to his previous position. He was exhausted.

Divya told Paige that she might be more comfortable on the couch but Paige shook her head. "You're sure? Because if you don't want it, I'll take it."

Hank said "You really should go home to rest too Div. Evan won't be waking up anytime soon."

Divya made herself comfortable on the couch and said "Evan and I might get into a lot of petty arguments, but you know I love him too, Hank. Besides, I should hang around unless a spider comes along again…" With that she closed her eyes. Hank looked at the two amazing women and realized how lucky Evan was to have them both.

Evan found himself in a beautiful garden. He was surrounded by flowers and large plants. The sun was shining and he felt good. Suddenly, he felt something tickle him on his neck. He reached for it and touched something ickily hairy. Then he felt like millions of bugs were crawling on him. He shuddered as he sensed a million hairy, prickly feet scampering down his neck, up his arms, into his shirt, under his pants. He wanted to scream but the moment he opened his mouth, a creepy crawly thing entered. He felt the tickle in his throat and gagged. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't move. He gasped, willing his eyes to open….HEEEEELLLLPPPP!

Evan's loud gasp woke Paige and Hank up.

"Evan, Evan, what's wrong buddy?" Hank asked, concern in his voice. He felt Evan's forehead and pressed the call button. He addressed Paige, "He's burning up! He's definitely got an infection somewhere."

His hands were all over Evan, wanting to check all his wounds for the possible source of infection. Evan was awake and trying to make Hank stop with his free hand.

"Hey, hey, hey, stop, that hurts Hank…I just had a nightmare for crying out loud." He let out a deep breath. Saying all those words exhausted him.

A nurse came in to check his vitals and said "Temp is 103.1. I'll have to call Dr. Lee. Mr. Lawson was scheduled to be brought to MRI at 9."

"Evan, you've got a fever. You need to calm down. The doctor will take care of you."

"Ugh….is he going to prick and prod again. I've had enough creepy crawlies on me. Besides YOU'RE a doctor. YOU take care of me." Evan grumbled.

Hank couldn't help but smile. "You won't even let me check your wounds, Ev."

Dr. Lee came in and checked on Evan. "Well young man, you've definitely got an infection. We'll take you down to MRI in a bit then we'll get you started on antibiotics."

"Is it going to hurt, Doc?"

Dr. Lee smiled. "After all you've been through Evan, the MRI, and the antibiotic in your IV will be a piece of cake. Now what's this I hear about a nightmare?"

Evan chuckled and looked at the frame on his night stand. "Twas nothing", he yawned. "Just a lot of Emilies."

Then he closed his eyes again.

Hank and Paige let out a sigh. Divya entered with some coffee.

As the three were drinking coffee and eating some Danish which Jill had brought, Evan started stirring. Hank was by his side at once, as was Paige.

"Ev, buddy?"

Evan opened his eyes looking anxious. He sighed heavily and said "I'm scared Hank."

"What is it?" Hank thought that Evan was thinking of the MRI. "Dr. Lee said it wouldn't hurt. You've seen it done before, remember? It's just like taking a picture."

Evan's breathing had become more shallow, and his eyes looked glassy and confused. "Not…the…MRI…"

He tried to shift his body as he grimaced. "I can feel it Hank, the blades, cutting….agh" He clutched his stomach. As he started curling into a ball again, Hank tried to help him. "It helps if you breathe through the pain, Ev..come on…breathe in, breathe out…"

Divya looked at the monitor and noticed Evan's heart rate rising again. She pressed the call button several times. Paige had her hand on the back of Evan's neck, massaging it gently to try to divert Evan's focus from the pain. She looked at Hank, panic in her eyes.

Dr. Lee rushed in giving out commands to the nurses to get Evan sedated and down to MRI. "I'm a doctor darn it, why can't I help you?" Hank was crying.

"You ARE helping, Hank. I'm his doctor. He needs YOU to be his big brother. Try to get him to relax…"

"Breathe in, breathe out…" Hank and Paige started saying in sync.

Evan tried to follow the rhythm and he did feel some relief from Paige's neck strokes…but the pain was just so overwhelming. After a few minutes, the medication had taken effect and Evan relaxed a little.

When the aides came to take Evan to MRI, Dr. Lee informed Hank that there was a waiting area and they could wait for Evan there, unless of course, they wanted to wait in the room where it was definitely more comfortable.

They all stood up at once, prepared to follow Evan. They all wanted him within their reach. Jill told Hank that she needed to work a bit but that she would catch up with them there.

As Jill headed towards her office, she bumped into someone.

"Umph…I'm sorry…" then she noticed that it was Emily.

Divya had filled Jill in on the events of the previous night and was guarded.

"Hank and I did not get to finish our discussion last night…"

"Well, he's busy right now so you might want to come back another time." Jill interrupted, turned to walk away.

Emily touched her arm and said meekly, "I just want to make things right…please?"

Still wary, Jill sighed and said, "Evan is undergoing some tests and Hank is with him. They should be back in the room in about an hour." Then she added, "Please don't add anymore stress to the two brothers. They're both pretty much spent."

Once Jill's back was to her, Emily raised her eyebrow as she watched Jill walk away. She flipped her head and walked towards the elevator.

When Jill was sure that Emily couldn't see her anymore, she headed for the MRI area. Hank was in a deep discussion with Dr. Lee. Jill told the ladies that Emily was there again, looking for Hank. Divya rolled her eyes and Paige frowned, clenching her fists. She wanted to hunt that women down and give her a piece of her mind. She closed her eyes and breathed in, then exhaled, breathed in, then exhaled. That calmed her down. She had more important things to do like be by Evan. Emily wasn't really worth her time and energy. She just better not aggravate her beau again or there would be hell to pay.

She noticed the look on Hank's face as he talked with Dr. Lee. She didn't like it. What was it she saw? Confusion…worry…sadness. This could NOT be good.

Hank shook Dr. Lee's hand and returned to the ladies. He looked straight at Jill and said, "I'm a good doctor. I am, I'm a …good…doctor. If it were any other person, I would know exactly what to do, exactly what to look for, and exactly how to go about treating it." Then he turned to Paige. "But this is Evan…Dr. Lee is telling me about all his symptoms, the findings in the MRI…normally, my mind would be racing to think of the proper treatments but all I could I think of was 'Evan has got to survive'…I can't even actively participate in his treatment because I DO NOT KNOW WHAT TO DO."

He broke down like nothing they had ever seen. The three ladies led him to a chair where he sat sobbing for a few minutes. Paige could not stand it any longer. She knelt in front of him, put her hand on his shoulder and said "Hank….what is it?"

Hank sighed and looked up at her. "He's bleeding again. The MRI detected it but they have to go in again to determine the origin and to stop it." He imagined the pain that his brother had already been through, and what he would have to endure with a second surgery so soon after the first. Paige was stunned. She didn't know what to say or think. She and Hank stared at each other, so much sadness in their eyes…and they pulled each other in for a hug. Unknowingly, they were both thinking the same thing. "I have to be strong. I have to hold it together because Evan needs us right now."


	9. Surgery again

**Chapter 9**

_Paige was stunned. She didn't know what to say or think. She and Hank stared at each other, so much sadness in their eyes…and they pulled each other in for a hug. Unknowingly, they were both thinking the same thing. "I have to be strong. I have to hold it together because Evan needs us right now."_

Dr. Emily Peck waited in the ICU visitors lounge. She was scheming on how to get back on Hank's good side. Clearly he cared a lot about his brother, but she honestly thought it was an overkill. Who is that close to a sibling? She was sure she would be able to charm her way back into his life. She wore her cutest outfit, subtly sexy but sexy nonetheless. She put on light makeup just so she would not appear desperate. Besides, she might need to shed a tear or two, to tug at Hank's heartstrings. She was ready. Now all she had to do was see him.

Hank, Paige and Divya were allowed to see Evan before he was brought up to surgery. He was still pretty much sedated but lucid enough to smile at his brother, his friend, and of course, his girl. His girl. Had he actually heard her say "I love him" to Hank, or was it just part of his dreams? At this point, he didn't care. He was just happy Paige was there.

Wait, but why did everyone look so glum?

Dr. Lee arrived to brief Evan about his surgery.

"Surgery? I don't need any more surgery!" Evan said groggily. "_What IS he talking about_?" he thought. He continued, "I feel fine now. I just had a nightmare about some pain…don't need surgery…seriously…"

Hank looked at Dr. Lee, suggesting with his expression that he be the one to explain to Evan.

Dr. Lawson took his brother's hand and said gently, "You're not in pain now Ev, because of the meds. The MRI indicated that you are bleeding again…"

"Bleeding? There's no blood that I can see." Evan countered, trying to lift his head to check, but it made him dizzy and he lay his head back down.

"Internally Ev, inside. All the blades you say you feel in your abdomen, that's the bleeding."

Evan frowned. "It's going to hurt more again….no more surgeries…please Hank….please…" he pleaded as he shifted his body. He scrunched his face as he suddenly felt the familiar stabbing pain starting. He really hated it when the meds were wearing off. How was he going to convince Hank that he was not in pain if he actually WAS in pain.

"Evan, you okay?" Hank noticed the change in his brother's face.

"Yeah…Hank…just an…itch…can't reach…" Evan tried to not gasp.

Hank knew his brother enough to realize that he was trying to mask his pain. He patted Evan's hand and said, "You're going to be prepped for surgery now. They'll make you more comfortable and take away your pain, ok? Buddy?"

When the aides came to move Evan, Paige bent down to kiss him, on the forehead, on each cheek, on his nose. Then she gazed into his eyes, smiled, and kissed him on the lips. Although still in agony, Evan managed a smile and a kiss back. It made the pain go away, if only for a minute. "I love you Evan" Hank and Paige said at the same time. Evan's widened for a second…a grin reached his lips. "I love you too…BOTH of you….and you too Divya…"

With heavy hearts, they watched him be wheeled away.

They all headed for the surgical floor visitors' lounge to wait. Jill had appeared with food and drinks, and they all sat around eating and talking about Evan. Each shared their own stories, most of which were hilarious and had them laughing. They especially loved Hank's accounts of their childhood and were imagining a mischievous little Evan. And of course, Paige's account of how she fell for Evan was priceless. She couldn't wait to tell him when he was out of surgery and no longer in pain. She wanted him to know the exact moment she wanted to remove the faux from the faux beau.

"Count backwards from 100…" Evan heard. He was already quite out of it.

"I can do that…I'm Evan R Lawson, CFO of HankMed…I can count…backwards…one hun_dred_…_ninety-nay_…."

Emily's patience was running out. She had seen no one enter the room Evan was in last night. She finally got up and called the hospital from her cellphone and asked specifically about the patient. When she was informed that he had not yet "come out of surgery", her heart skipped a beat. "_Surgery?_" she thought. Her stomach suddenly had butterflies. Could she have caused Evan to need….no, it couldn't be. Doctor that she was, she knew she could not have been the reason. But still…she started getting annoyed again. She knew that Hank would be all caring and protective and big-brotherly once more and that would set back her plans of getting back his affections. He would have no time for her. Her mind was spinning out new ways of attracting the concierge doctor.

Back at the lounge, Jill stood up to get back to work when she suddenly remembered that Emily was still around. She reminded Hank who cringed and sighed. Paige felt sorry for him and said that maybe he should go talk to her while Evan was still in the OR. Hank hesitated. He did want to set things straight with Emily, but he also wanted to be nearby in case someone came out with an update on his brother. Paige saw his hesitation, but before she could promise to go find him in case someone came out, Divya cleared her throat and whispered "speak of the devil…" They all looked up to see Emily at the doorway.

Jill excused herself quickly, whispering "Good luck" to Hank when she passed him and nodding a "bye" to the other ladies.

Doing her best to look meek and mild, Emily said, "How's Evan, Hank? I hope he's feeling better."

Paige and Divya glanced at each other then prepared to leave when Hank said, "You…you're leaving?"

"We'll just be around Hank…we're waiting for news too." Divya assured him.

Emily entered and kissed Hank shyly on the cheek.

**A/N: Long weekend. Short chapter. Sorry. **

**Thank you again for the reviews, alerts, and favourites. Totally appreciated! Next chapter will be up soon...I promise!**


	10. We're losing him!

**Chapter 10**

**A/N: Sorry if I sound like a broken record, but thanks again to all who read and reviewed. I appreciate it all and will not delete anything, unless maybe it has offensive language. Otherwise, everything is taken as constructive. I also want to apologize for not indicating that there would be OC (thanks Bessie for pointing it out). I just got carried away. And my excuse…it's my first ever work of fiction (not counting anything I might have written in school ages ago)**

_Emily entered and kissed Hank shyly on the cheek._

Hank smiled slightly and guided Emily to the chairs. They sat beside each other. Emily put her hand on Hank's arm and he looked at her. She DID look good, and so…what was the word….sweet.

Emily hesitated before saying, "I'm sorry about yesterday. I should have been more sympathetic. I know how much you care about your brother."

Hank just nodded. He wanted to apologize too, but for what? He thought hard and said at last, "Listen Emily, I should apologize too. I should have at least called to let you know why I was too preoccupied to answer or return calls."

The female doctor let out a sigh. "So….we're okay then?" It took awhile for Hank to respond. He took several deep breaths but still did not say anything.

"_What's taking him so long to answer?_" Emily thought. She was getting impatient but tried not to show it. "Hank? Are we okay then?" She repeated.

Hank thought long and hard. Finally, he took a deep breath and looked into Emily's eyes. "_God, she's beautiful_."

"Listen Em. I…don't…think…this will work." Emily's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "_A spider could crawl in there._" Hank found himself thinking.

"I don't….understand. I said I was sorry."

Hank noticed that her brows started to furrow. He deliberated on what to say.

"I know, and I'm sorry too. It's just that…I don't think I could see someone who my brother feels so strongly against. I thought I could, but I guess…after all this…I know I can't."

"You CAN'T?" Emily's voice was a little louder, bordering on shrill, in fact. "You CAN'T? Or you WON'T?"

Again Hank sighed. "I can't…and I won't."

Emily calmed herself down. She knew she would get nowhere if she got all high strung. She tried to look and sound concerned.

"Hank, you know, I care about you a lot. I want you to be happy. If you let your brother get in the way of all the women you date, how will you ever find happiness? Don't you deserve that? Doesn't Evan love you enough to allow you that?"

Hank was deep in thought. He considered what Emily had just said. He used to think that Evan's aversion to Emily was just because she posed a threat to HankMed, that he thought of the female doctor as a rival to HankMed, not to Hank. He looked back at his past relationships. He could not remember a time that Evan opposed any of the girls Hank went out with, except for those who were obvious wack jobs. He even tolerated his ex-fiance Nikki, until she showed her true colours during that whole treating-a-neighbourhood-kid-instead-of-a-hospital-hotshot fiasco. Before Emily, his last relationship was with Jill and he didn't really remember Evan having a problem with it. Now he realized that maybe his kid brother saw a side to Emily that went beyond professional rivalry. He didn't like her implication that Evan did not love him enough. Evan was everything to Hank, and vice versa and Hank was sure of that.

Because Hank was taking too long, Emily said emphatically, "Hank…you can't POSSIBLY let Evan come between you and me?" She pouted and batted her eyelashes just slightly.

Suddenly, he remembered walking down the halls of the hospital with Jill, that time Evan was moved to the private room. Her voice rang in his head, "_he's like a brother to me…"_

"Emily, Evan is not coming between you and me. YOU are coming between him and me." With that, he stood up. He didn't need to explain any further. He held out his hand. Puzzled, Emily took it. She was shocked at what he had just said, but was puzzled by his gesture. He held out his hand…maybe there was hope…

Hank pulled her up gently, kissed her on both cheeks and stared into her eyes. "I've loved every moment." Hank looked wistful. "I've loved it all…but no one…NO ONE…can ever come between my baby brother and me."

For the second time that day, Emily's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "You'll regret this, Dr. Henry Lawson! You WILL! Maybe you won't let anyone come between Evan and you, but do you think he will give you that same courtesy? You wait, you wait 'til that Paige Collins comes between you and him. YOU JUST WAIT!"

"_It's YOU he needs right now." _Hank remembered Paige's words.

Hank shook his head and smiled. "No, Emily…the difference is, even Paige won't let herself come between my brother and me."

And, for the umpteenth time in the last two days, Dr. Emily Peck was livid. She grabbed her purse and stormed out. She passed Divya and Paige who were standing nearby, chatting, and glared at them as she headed for the elevator.

The two ladies looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders. "I thought they were going to set things straight." Paige said. Divya smiled, and knowing Hank, she replied, "You know what, I think Hank did set things straight….Emily just can't handle straight."

They went back to the lounge to find Hank sitting, his head against the wall, his eyes closed. Divya whispered to Paige, "He looks…at peace…"

Dr. Lee and his team were desperately trying to stop the bleeding in Evan's insides. The OR was a flurry of activity as the doctors worked hard on saving the young man.

"Suction!"

"Sponge."

"BP's dropping, doctor."

"Clamp…clamp...more suction!"

The sounds in the Operating Room were a mixture of machines beeping and whirring, doctors' commanding voices, nurses' urgent replies, a variety of gasps, sighs and curses.

"We're losing him! We're losing him!"

Everyone suddenly looked up as the screen showed a flatline.

_Evan was floating. Clouds everywhere. He was serene. He looked around, a huge smile on his face. He reached to touch the clouds. Ahhh, soft. Cool! He looked below and saw grass…and flowers…and teeny-weeny people waving at him. He waved back then looked up. Mom? MOM! She looks so happy. She doesn't look sick at all. Evan reached up with both hands, like a toddler._

Hank woke up with a start. He blinked several times. He let exhaled noisily. "It was just a dream…"

"Hello Sleeping Beauty. What was just a dream?" Divya looked up from the magazine she was reading.

"What?" he squinted. "I had the strangest dream. What time is it?"

"It's about 3 o'clock…why do you think it's taking so long?" Paige piped in.

They looked at each other, worry evident on your faces.

"What was your dream about, Hank?" Divya tried to break the tension.

Hank shook his head. "It was about….Evan…" he looked up at the ladies and continued, uneasily, "…and our…mom…."

Divya went to sit beside him and put her hand on his back. "It was a dream Hank. It was JUST a dream." She tried hard to sound comforting, but she too, was anxious.

The next hour was filled with tension and restlessness. They tried to call Jill earlier but she said she had just spoken with someone who said she didn't know anything except that the OR had ordered more blood.

Another hour passed.

"I can't stand this." Hank finally said, standing up. "I'm taking a walk." As he started for the door, Paige and Divya looked at each other. They knew that there was no way Hank would leave and guessed that he would walk towards the OR. They got up to follow him.

They hung out outside the doors that led to the Operating Rooms, fidgeting, pacing.

The doors suddenly opened and Dr. Lee came out, blood all over his scrubs, looking exhausted. He saw the three waiting for him, apprehension and anticipation on their faces. He took off his surgical cap and inhaled deeply before beginning.


	11. All he had to do now was

**Chapter 11**

_The doors suddenly opened and Dr. Lee came out, blood all over his scrubs. He saw the three waiting for him, apprehension and anticipation on their faces. He took off his surgical cap and inhaled deeply before beginning._

Hank's heart was beating furiously and his stomach was in knots. The image in his dream of Evan reaching out to their mom quickly flashed and he tried to shake it away.

"First of all, Evan is alive and in recovery right now."

Hank, Paige and Divya wanted to sigh in relief but none of them did. It seemed they were all holding their breath. Why did they feel that the doctor's next word would be "but"?

"But," he looked at all three of them sadly, "the next 24 hours will be critical."

He went on, "It took quite awhile for us to stem the bleeding. Apparently, the toxins from the venom of the spider did more damage than we initially assessed. The blood you donated helped so much as Evan was losing more blood than we could transfuse. We are also concerned about septicemia."

Paige gasped suddenly and her knees buckled under her. Divya and Hank caught her before she could fall completely. She immediately regained her composure and asked Dr. Lee to go on.

"We have started him on stronger antibiotics and will make adjustments once the cultures come in. The good news is, there has been no sign of further damage to the liver or kidneys, but we are monitoring that closely as well. Plus, Evan seemed to have been in excellent health before all this so, while his condition is still listed as critical, he's got that going for him."

Hank pondered that for a moment and tried to hold on to Dr. Lee's optimism. He thanked Dr. Lee then turned to the girls. He suddenly noticed that he and Divya were still supporting Paige, who in turn, was still clinging to them. As Dr. Lee left, Paige apologized to the other two for almost breaking down on them.

"I had an uncle who died of sepsis…is…is that the same thing as what Evan…has?" the obviously rattled young lady asked.

Hank cringed at the word, and the thought. "Dr. Lee said they are concerned…they're still waiting for the results of the culture, right? Besides, they're ahead on the treatment…" his voice trailed. He knew how bad it could get even with treatment.

Another one of Evan's doctors appeared, introduced himself and informed them that they would be moving Evan to his room soon. He also assured them that he would get the same monitoring and care there that he would have had in the ICU.

Jill was already in Evan's room when the three got there. She was finalizing the arrangements for round-the-clock monitoring. When she saw her friends enter, she went to Hank and hugged him. No words were needed for Hank to feel the comfort that Jill offered.

When Evan was finally wheeled in, they could not help but tense up as they took in his appearance. What they saw was the exact opposite of the usually vibrant young man who always introduced himself as "Evan R Lawson, CFO of HankMed". Was it even possible that he looked even sicker than he did before his surgery?

They waited for the patient to be settled, all tubes in place, all machines running well. When the last of them left, they approached the bed. Each had their little one-way talk with the unconscious man, then got themselves settled.

Dr. Emily Peck still could not believe what had transpired between her and Hank. She was used to getting her way with men and never in her life had any male chosen someone else over her, least of all their brother. She had siblings too but she would never let them get in the way of her happiness, and she was sure that Hank could not be happier with a brother than with a pretty little thing like herself.

She busied herself with her work, knowing that there was no use trying to get Hank back while Evan was still sick. She took it as the perfect opportunity to move in on the valued clients of HankMed. "Ha! I'll show them!"

Days passed. Hank, Paige and Divya had developed a routine that revolved around their beloved patient. Paige and Hank had refused to leave his side except for bathroom breaks and quick showers. Neither had seen their homes in days. Divya spent most nights there, but did go home once in awhile to shower, buy food and run other errands. She also took on some of the case load Hank would have normally covered. Fortunately, there were no pressing emergencies. She did find out that Emily had been approaching many of their regulars but when she told Hank about it, he didn't really care.

Jill visited often of course, and surprisingly so did Dr. Blair. Boris had dropped by, and on more than one occasion, had sent over sumptuous meals for Hank and company. Some of HankMeds' clients had either visited or sent cards and flowers.

Hank had watched Paige hover over him, and was even embarrassed one time when she caught him staring as she caressed his brother's face and whispered sweet nothings in his ear. He was filled with an overwhelming sense of brotherly love for this young lady who seemed to care so much for his baby brother.

For his part, Hank just missed Evan. It had literally been days since he heard the kid's (to him, Evan would always be a kid) crazy marketing ideas, or his wild proposals. He missed the banter and the jokes. He hated that their last real conversation was a stupid fight over Emily.

Evan had drifted in and out of consciousness but was never fully lucid to recognize what was going on around him. His blood cultures had confirmed Septicemia but it was awhile before they were able to get the most effective dosage of antibiotics to treat it. There were a couple of scary moments when Evan would moan and groan and end up screaming in pain. Then there were the fevers and chills, and on two occasions, he convulsed violently.

The most frightening though, was when they thought Evan was finally coming to. He had stirred and shifted his body, groaning, his eyes fluttering. Then he gasped out loud and his body was suddenly limp and deathly still as the beeps and blips of the machines became one long monotone. That had sent a whole army of medical personnel rushing in with a crash cart. Paige had become almost hysterical as Hank, with all his medical background, could do nothing but just stare in shock. That had to be the worst moment for them since the whole crisis started, although to Hank, it was right up there with his brother had asking "When did I become your last priority?"

Finally though, Evan started showing signs of improvement. It took a little more than a week. His vitals were stabilizing. There was no more fever. The septicemia had been treated and his organs were almost completely healed. All he had to do now was...wake up.


	12. Awake at last

**Chapter 12**

_All he had to do now was wake up. _

It had been a week since Emily had spoken to Hank. She was busy with work and tried not think about him, or the fact that he dumped her just because she said his brother was coming between them. How dare he? And for him to compare her to that Collins girl! "_I am a DOCTOR of Medicine!_" she thought angrily. "_She is just a poor little rich girl who still depends on her parents!_"

She sighed heavily as she put her things in the car and got in. The patient she had just seen needed some x-rays so she was forced to meet him at the hospital. She rolled her eyes and hoped that she would not run into any of "those people".

As she walked to Radiology, she saw Jill Casey exit the elevator. Not wanting to run into her, she turned sharply and bumped into Divya.

Divya eyed her suspiciously but decided not to say anything and was about to walk on when Emily opened her mouth.

"I'm here with a patient, Mr. Huntzberger."

Divya kept her mouth shut for a moment, then said, "Oh…kay…"

As she was about to walk away, Emily said, "Divya….how's….Evan?"

Divya, still wary, asked, "Don't you mean…Hank?"

Emily frowned. "Look, I'm not a bad person, Divya. I just…"

Not wanting to hang around any longer, Divya said, "Evan is getting better and Hank is fine. I have patients too so I have to go."

"Uhm, could you say hi to them for me and tell Evan I hope he gets better." Emily called as Divya walked away.

As the two women walked away from each other, both were thinking to themselves, "Yeah, right!"

Dr. Lee entered Evan's room to find Hank busy with a book, and Paige sketching by the bed.

"Good morning….and how is our patient doing today?"

"His fever has broken and all his vitals have been stable for awhile, but he hasn't really awakened yet."

Dr. Lee examined him, then told them that he would be taking him off some of his medications and removing the feeding tube as he should be waking up soon. He went to say that he was healing beautifully and was on his way to a full recovery. Dr. Lee looked around the room and nodded in approval. "Looks like you've dressed the room up a bit." There were flowers all over the room, and all the cards sent by friends and HankMed's clients were neatly displayed on the window sill. On the nightstand were three picture frames - one of Hank, Evan and Divya (given by Divya), one of Evan and Paige (taken when he was her faux beau) and the controversial "He named the spider Emily" one.

"We want Evan to wake up to pleasant surroundings" Paige said.

At that moment, a sound came from the bed.

Evan R Lawson, CFO of HankMed was awake.

"Hey Ev…" Hank said. Evan squinted at his brother.

"Hank? Why….why are you here? Isn't it your day off?"

Hank looked at Dr. Lee and Paige, then back at his brother.

"You're in the hospital Evan."

Evan looked confused as he tried to recall what happened to him. He suddenly remembered the pain. He closed his eyes, then realized that there was no pain. He looked at his bandaged arm. It seemed fine. Then he saw Paige.

"Paige," he whispered. She smiled at him.

"You…you…were there...you held my hand."

"I did." Paige said matter-of-factly.

As the memories flooded, Evan suddenly looked horrified. His eyes widened, "I spewed blood all over you!"

Paige laughed, "You did."

"Oh my go…Paige, I'm so sorry!"

Paige took his hand and kissed it. "No worries Sweetie."

Evan looked at Hank again and whispered "She called me Sweetie."

Dr. Lee interrupted the banter and said, "Well…I'm glad to finally meet you in a more lucid and healthier state. You gave your brother quite a scare."

Evan frowned, confused again. "Scare? I scared YOU?" He stared at Hank, ludicrous.

"You were very sick, Ev. You had two surgeries, a bad infection plus blood poisoning, you convulsed several times. You even went into respiratory arrest! Of course I was scared." Hank told his brother.

Evan continued to look confused. Then he looked at Dr. Lee.

"You're doing fine Evan. You're quite lucky actually. Due to the fact that it took awhile after you'd been bitten …"

"Bitten?"

Dr. Lee continued. "I know it's taking awhile to process Evan. You've been out of it awhile. You were bitten by a venomous spider. Ms. Collins found you in your home but not for awhile and by then, the venom had spread. By some miracle, it did not reach your brain nor your nervous system, but it did a bit of damage to some of your organs, and you did have severe internal bleeding. We had to open you up twice, and you practically refused the second time around."

Evan vaguely remembered feeling like someone had taken a lawn mower with sharp blades going through his insides. He put his hands to his stomach area and saw his bandaged arm again.

"The poison moved fast through your blood stream." Hank answered the unasked question.

Dr. Lee took in the scene of the three in front of him and said, "I'll leave you to your little reunion. I'm sure you're hungry, Evan? I'll have someone bring up something…no solids yet for now but you'll get there."

With Dr. Lee gone, Evan looked at Hank again.

"I still don't get it…why would you be scared?"

Paige took the opportunity to say, "I'm going to leave you two to talk. I'll be right back."

"Wait…please…don't leave." Evan pleaded.

Paige hesitated, glanced at Hank and said, "I'm not leaving Evan…I'll just be around here somewhere."

Hank noticed that his brother appeared very apprehensive.

"Evan?"

Evan actually looked scared.

"You…don't want to be alone with me, do you?"

Evan shot a glance at his brother and said quietly, "No…its' not that…I just…."

"What is it Evan?" Hank and Paige exchanged worried looks.

"I just don't want to be….alone…"

"You're not alone, Evan..."

"But I WAS…." Evan almost whispered. All the memories of that day came back…the pain, the failed attempts to call Hank and Divya. Emily's voice, "_Don't call again…". _Hank shouting _"…unless it's a matter of life or death…_" He shut his eyes tight. He wanted the voices to go away. He wanted the horrible memories to stop, but they kept coming back…"_Come on Evan, say you're sorry."_

The pained expression on Evan's face brought tears to Hank's eyes, and Paige's too. They both knew that he recalled everything.

"I'm…sorry…Hank…" Evan suddenly said to a very shocked Hank.

Hank put his hand under Evan's chin to pull his face up. "Sorry? Ev? What do you have to be sorry for?"

Evan refused to meet Hank's eyes. "For ruining your day-off. For naming the spider after your girlfriend. For …"

This time, Hank took his brother's face in both his hands, forcing Evan to face him.

"First of all, little brother, I don't have a girlfriend…and second…"

Evan finally looked into Hank's eyes. "And second?"

Hank stared intensely into the blue eyes of his baby brother. "And second…I was supposed to take the day off from work…." Hank's voice cracked. "NOT from family." Then a teardrop fell. "I…am… soooo… sorry, Evan."

Divya and Jill arrived just in time to see the Lawson brothers in a tight hug. They just stood in the doorway, not wanting to interrupt the tender moment. Paige's face was wet with tears as she smiled at the scene before her.

When the brothers finally pulled away from each other, wiping their tears, Divya announced, "Well, well...Evan R Lawson is awake at last."


	13. You love me

**Chapter 13**

_"Well, well...Evan R Lawson is awake at last."_

Divya and Jill approached Evan and hugged him, welcoming him back into the land of the conscious. Then Divya punched him lightly on the arm.

"Hey, what was THAT for?"

"That's for cutting short my spa day." Divya answered, flicking him on the ear. "And that's for scaring the daylights out of us!.""

"I knew it!" Evan raised his eyebrows, grinning. "Ms. Katdare…you DO care."

Divya tried hard to sound sarcastic, "Yes, I care that I've had double the case load with Hank here fussing over you and never leaving your side."

They all spent the next few minutes filling Evan in on what had been happening the past few days, mostly an account of Evan's various health scares. They were just on the topic of spiders when Divya spoke up.

"Speaking of spiders," she announced glancing at the door, remembering the last time they talked about the little creatures. "I ran into Dr. Peck downstairs."

They all turned to look at her. Evan chanced a glance at his big brother.

"And…?" Jill finally asked.

"And nothing," Divya shrugged nonchalantly. "She asked how Evan was and to tell him to get well soon."

The disbelief in all their faces made Divya laugh. "My thoughts exactly!" she said, and continued. "She said she was here for Mr. Huntzberger's x-rays."

"Huntzberger?" Evan cried out. "Isn't he one of our regulars?"

They all suddenly kept quiet.

"What? What aren't you telling me?"

Divya finally spoke up. "Well, Dr. Peck has kind of been….for lack of a better word…poaching… our clients. I guess she's just taking advantage of Hank's absence."

Evan was about to protest when Hank said gently, "Come on Ev, you are actually on official medical leave so you don't need to think about this right now."

Evan narrowed his eyes at Hank, and remembered what he said, "_First of all, little brother, I don't have a girlfriend…_"

"Wait….awhile ago….before all that hugging stuff…what did you mean….why did you say you didn't have a girlfriend?"

Hank shook his head. It took him awhile to respond.

"Emily….wasn't really my girlfriend to begin with. We were kind of just…."

"Sleeping with the enemy?" Evan interrupted.

Hank chuckled, "Haha...I did like her, the key word being DID."

Evan narrowed his eyes, "What…happened? I…I….I hope you didn't break up because of me."

Hank didn't say anything.

"Oh Henry….I'm sorry…I didn't mean for you to….I mean, I WANT you to be…, "What…happened? I…I….I hope she didn't break up with you because of me."

Hank didn't say anything.

"Oh Henry….I'm sorry…I didn't mean for you to….I mean, I WANT you to be….I mean…you DESERVE to be happy." Evan sounded distressed.

"To set the record straight…she didn't break up with me. I broke up with her. And no Ev, it wasn't because of you. It was because of her."

Now everyone looked confused. They had never spoken about that day when Hank and Emily had their talk. Suddenly, they all seemed interested in what went on in that lounge.

Hank became aware that he was, all of a sudden, the center of attraction.

He sighed and said, addressing Evan, "She said that I deserved to be happy and that you were coming between me and her."

Silence. Eyes were all focused on him, waiting for him to continue.

"I realized that you had never really come between me and anyone I'd dated before…" his eyes shifted to Jill, just for a second. "So I told her….you weren't coming between me and her….SHE was coming between you and me…"

He shrugged his shoulders and added, "Besides, I figured…HankMed needs a CFO more than it needs another doctor…"

Evan looked at his brother with awe.

"You liked her."

"That…I did."

"You love me." Evan stated, almost like a question.

"That…I DO."

"There ARE better girls out there, you know." Evan glanced playfully at Jill.

Hank took a quick look at Jill too. "That…there ARE."

Jill appeared a little embarrassed but smiled and said, "Ooooh, awkward….I'll say bye for now. I've still got work to do."

She patted Evan's leg and said "So glad you're much better Evan. I'll be back later before I go home." Then she smiled at Divya, Paige, and lastly at Hank, and waved.

"Way to go embarrassing a lady Ev." Hank teased.

Evan then shut his eyes tight, winced, exhaled deeply and laid his head on the pillow.

"EVAN?" Hank, Divya and Paige called in unison, each with a hand on a part of his body.

The patient opened his eyes to three fretful faces on him.

"What's wrong?"

"Does it hurt? Where?"

"What can I do?"

"I'm calling the doctor!"

They all talked at once.

Evan breathed deeply again. "Guys, guys…I am….just….a little….tired."

He shut his eyes again, breathing a little heavily, "I…I…maybe I can just take a short nap?"

"You sure you're okay, buddy?" Hank said softly, his face close to his brother's.

Evan opened one eye at his brother and said, "Yes Henry…just so…sleepy…"

They all let out a sigh of relief. Divya went back to the couch and took out some folders and started to work. Hank sat back down with his book.

Paige turned to get her sketch pad when Evan suddenly said, "Speaking of love…"

Paige turned back. Evan's eyes were still closed but he continued, "Why do I keep dreaming the words 'I love him'?"

Hank and Divya looked up at Paige. Evan's eyes were still closed. Paige smiled, took Evan's face in her hands, kissed him on the forehead, on each cheek, on the nose…then she whispered "The "I" would be me…the "him" would be you." Then she kissed him on the lips.

"Mmmmm" Evan kissed back, eyes still closed.

"Hey Evan," Divya called from couch.

Evan's eyes opened a little. "What, Divya? You jealous?"

Still bent over Evan, Paige smiled.

"You know, when you were in surgery, they had to transfuse a lot of blood right?"

"And?" Evan said.

"Well, they almost ran out of your blood type…so we all got tested to donate."

"We all? Even you?" Evan said, unbelieving.

Divya rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah, even I!"

"So….now your blood runs through my veins?"

"No, I wasn't a match….but Hank was…and so was Paige."

That got Evan's attention and his eyes opened wide. He was staring right into Paige's eyes as her face was still just inches from his. She rolled her eyebrows up and down.

He shot up in his bed and cried out, "Hank?"

Hank was grinning from his chair, nose still in his book.

"HENRY?"

"What Ev?" Hank couldn't help but laugh, peeking from his book.

"Does that make us like….like brother and sister?" Evan looked at his brother, then at Paige, then at Hank, then at Paige again.

All three of them laughed.

Paige took Evan's face in her hands once more. She kissed him on his forehead, on each cheek and on the nose. Then she stared into his eyes intensely and said, "Evan R Lawson, I would have done anything to make sure you lived…but before I gave my blood, I made sure to ask the doctor…if I could still do this…." Then she kissed him on the lips again.

Divya and Hank looked at each other smiling.

"Wow...they grow up so fast." Divya said.

"They really do." Hank followed.

"She called me Sweetie." Evan said through the kiss.

"He named the spider Emily." Hank, Divya and Paige (through the kiss) all said in unison.

The END.

**A/N: I would like to thank once again, all of those who read to the end, and to those who reviewed.I feel like I've got new friends.  
**


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